Standing by the motto “anything worth doing is worth doing well’ the ARISE Plus project has successfully organised the first ACTS Private Sector Partnership Building Outreach Event on the 15 February 2022, targeting Malaysia and Singapore. This event is the first of a series of outreach events planned across the ASEAN region.
The prime objective of the event was to increase awareness and buy-in amongst the private sector on the value of the ASEAN Customs Transit System (ACTS) as a platform to support the movement of goods in ASEAN. The event was designed to inform the private sector on the functionality and benefits of ACTS which has been operating live in Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Viet Nam since 2 November 2020. Follow-up personalised workshops were offered to companies wishing to proceed with the adoption of ACTS.
The event was attended by 83 private sector representatives from approximately 30 companies from the manufacturing, trading, logistics, freight forwarding, and customs brokerage areas. The event was conducted with the support of business associations such the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers, Singapore Business Federation, Malaysian International Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Federation of Malaysian Freight Forwarders and EUROCHAM Malaysia. The highlight of the event was the session by the General Manager of City Zone Express Sdn Bhd, Mr S.Pirithivaraj who shared practical insights, experiences and the tangible benefits gained from using ACTS, which included seamless customs clearance, faster border crossings, accurate goods arrival times, possibility of using a single truck across countries and up to 40% of cost savings.
A strong outcome of the workshop was the request from 20 participants, across 19 organisations, for follow-up personalised workshops offered by ARISE Plus and the ASEC ACTS Central Management Team indicating their commitment to implement the ACTS. This successful event reflects the longstanding collaboration between ASEAN and the EU in implementing the ACTS. There was a good gender balance amongst the participants including approximately 49% female and 51% male participants
The next outreach event will cater to the private sector from Thailand.
